Cloverfield Crossover Movie Almost Happened, Probably Won't Now

After the surprise release of The Cloverfield Paradox on Super Bowl Sunday, just after the big game, there has been no shortage of hype around the entire franchise. Fans won't have to wait much longer for the next installment, with Paramount confirming that Cloverfield 4, rumored to be titled Overlord, will have a theatrical release on October 26, 2018. J.J. Abrams has been a part of this franchise as a producer from the beginning and during a new interview, the producer teased the possibility of a team-up movie that brings characters together from all three movies.

J.J. Abrams and his Bad Robot production company produced the first Cloverfield movie in 2008, which was well-received by critics (77% on Rotten Tomatoes), and took in a decent $80 million, plus another $90.7 million internationally for $170.7 million worldwide, from just a $25 budget. While there had been talk of a sequel for many years fans finally got the surprise follow-up, of sorts, they had been waiting for in 2016's 10 Cloverfield Lane, which was originally a film for the now-defunct Paramount Vantage low-budget label The Cellar. After some script rewrites and reshoots, the movie was surprisingly rebranded as 10 Cloverfield Lane just months before its release, and it took in $72 million domestic and $110.2 million worldwide, although the critical response was much greater with a 90% RT rating. The Cloverfield Paradox was originally called God Particle, and long-rumored to be the third installment of the franchise, and there were even rumors that the movie was heading to Netflix before it was confirmed with the Super Bowl ad, but no one expected the movie to be available directly after the game. During a new Facebook Q&A to promote The Cloverfield Paradox, producer J.J. Abrams teased they were considering a movie that would tie in all three movies.

"We've talked about versions of things. When we did 10 Cloverfield Lane, we were thinking Michelle, the character Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays, it's such a sort of weird origin story of this kind of incredibly, I think, awesome heroine. The idea of following her story is really cool. And then at one point, we were like, 'You know what would be really cool? What if they crossed paths with Gugu (Mbatha-Raw)'s character Ava?' You start to think of 'what ifs.' And I think the bigger ideas that we've had about where this thing goes haven't necessarily been those ideas, but they've kind of been fun theoretical offshoots."

While it may be an interesting idea in theory, it may be quite the logistical challenge to pull off a meeting between Michelle and Ava. 10 Cloverfield Lane is believed to be set in the year it was released, 2016, although The Cloverfield Paradox is set in the year 2028. At the end of 10 Cloverfield Lane, Michelle hears a call on the radio asking for survivors, and it is believed that she may have went looking for those survivors, and while it's possible that another movie could ultimately bridge the 12-year gap between these stories, it remains to be seen whether or not this movie will actually happen. What also remains to be seen is how the WWII thriller entitled Overlord will fit into the franchise.

It was confirmed earlier today that Netflix paid $50 million for The Cloverfield Paradox, which was said to be a one-time deal. Now that Overlord has been confirmed for a theatrical release, it remains to be seen when the first footage from that movie will surface. You can take a look at J.J. Abrams' Q&A through The Cloverfield Paradox Facebook.